


The Carisi Cannoli Tradition

by Ava_now



Series: Barisi Dads AU [31]
Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Family Fluff, Halloween Costumes, Holiday Traditions, Loving Husbands, M/M, New Dads, doting grandmas, halloween carnivals, more sugar than your candy haul
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2020-11-02
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:00:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27345451
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ava_now/pseuds/Ava_now
Summary: Sonny proudly held up two knitted pieces.  One resembled a white baby onesie with bits of lace and embellishment.  The second piece was brown and looked like a blanket.  Both pieces were clearly hand knit and a bit old.  ¨My nonni made it when my dad was a newborn.  All of my sisters and me wore it, and every baby in the family since.  Itś Marley Maeś turn this year, Rafi!” Looking at it again, Sonny added, ¨Itś missing the hat, but Ma said sheś already started knitting a new one.  She thinks Theresa may have kept the hat after Mia was born.¨Rafael raised one eyebrow.  ¨Sonny...what in the hell IS it?¨¨You can´t tell?” Sonny asked incredulously.  ¨Itś a cannoli!¨Rafael felt his mouth hang open.  Several seconds passed before he said, ¨I just thought she’d go as a pumpkin or something.”*****It's a tradition.  And this year it's baby Marlene's turn to wear the honorary cannoli costume.
Relationships: Rafael Barba/Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr.
Series: Barisi Dads AU [31]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1541101
Comments: 12
Kudos: 40





	The Carisi Cannoli Tradition

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ItalianDoll](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItalianDoll/gifts).



> Hello and thanks for reading!
> 
> This fic is dedicated to ItalianDoll, for sharing the most wonderful photo of a tiny baby in a homemade, knitted cannoli costume and proclaiming the child a Barisi baby. Well, of course! 
> 
> If you've followed along, four of Marley's five Halloweens have been mentioned, and three have stories about them. Her costumes have been as such: at 3 months, a cannoli; at one year, it hasn't been mentioned; at two years, the Cat in the Hat (in the fic Sweet Treats); at 3 years, the Paper Bag Princess (the absolute best story by Robert Munsch; mentioned it the fic A Star Wars Halloween); at 4, Princess Leia (in A Star Wars Halloween); and at 5, Ruth Bader Ginsburg (in the fic Two Franks, a Judge, and Some Reese's). She's had some interesting costumes, but I absolutely LOVE this one and how it fits into the family's history.
> 
> I truly appreciate all comments and kudos! Hope you enjoy!

“Here we are, sweetheart.” Sonny picked up their tiny baby, now swaddled and ready for sleep. Marley was almost three months old, and smiled happily whenever she saw him or Rafael. He had just finished bathing her and drying her off, then lotioning her with a lavender baby lotion. He had chosen a soft green baby onesie with a llama on the front to dress her in, then added socks so her tiny feet wouldn’t get cold. Finally he swaddled her in one of his favorite swaddling blankets. He could tell she was sleepy in the way she was looking at him, but her smile was still on her face, lighting up her sweet expression. He moved over to the couch with her, cuddling her up and kissing her forehead. “You’re such a sweet princess, aren’t you? Daddy loves his princess so very much. Are you ready for your bottle? If Papi doesn’t get here in the next five minutes, I’m taking HIS turn! Yes I will, won’t I? What do you think about that, sweet baby? Papi better hurry it up, huh? We have a hungry belly, don’t we?” 

Just then Rafael opened the door, practically out of breath. “Sorry...sorry. I ran late at work...came as quick as I could.” He’d already toed his shoes off, hung his jacket up, and put his briefcase down. “How’s our beautiful girl, huh? How are you today, mi dulce amor?¨ Rafael leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the babyś forehead as he removed his cufflinks and rolled his sleeves up.

¨Wash your hands,¨ Sonny reminded him, and Rafael booked it to the sink, washed, and then grabbed the bottle from the warmer. He seated himself in the recliner, and Sonny gently handed him the baby.

¨Ah, mi dulce princesa...howś that, darling?¨ The baby quickly attached herself to the nipple and sucked hungrily, eyes briefly meeting his before starting to close heavily. Rafael sighed. ¨I made it,¨ he said softly to nobody in particular.

Sonny smiled. ¨You did. I knew you would. Can you believe this little one is going to be three months next week? October 29th...I cannot believe it has been that long. It seems like yesterday we were bringing her home.¨

Rafael chuckled softly. ¨Yeah, it does.¨

¨Oh, wait!¨ Sonny suddenly exclaimed, jumping up from the couch. ¨My mom brought over something very important today...youŕe gonna love it, Rafi!¨ He carefully made his way from the kitchen table to the living room with something behind his back. ¨Itś a Carisi family tradition...da-da-dum! The babyś first Halloween costume!¨

Rafael looked up, half smiling. Leave it to the Carisis to have a family costume. ¨Your whole family wore this costume on their first Halloween?¨ he asked, squinting as he tried to figure out what it was. ¨Is that a tradition anybody else has? I´ve never heard of that before. What is it?¨

Sonny proudly held up two knitted pieces. One resembled a white baby onesie with bits of lace and embellishment. The second piece was brown and looked like a blanket. Both pieces were clearly hand knit and a bit old. ¨My nonni made it when my dad was a newborn. All of my sisters and me wore it, and every baby in the family since. Itś Marley Maeś turn this year, Rafi!” Looking at it again, Sonny added, ¨Itś missing the hat, but Ma said sheś already started knitting a new one. She thinks Theresa may have kept the hat after Mia was born.¨

Rafael raised one eyebrow. ¨Sonny...what in the hell IS it?¨

¨You can´t tell?” Sonny asked incredulously. ¨Itś a cannoli!¨

Rafael felt his mouth hang open. Several seconds passed before he said, ¨I just thought she’d go as a pumpkin or something.”

Sonny made a face. “If she was somebody else’s kid, she probably would. But she’s a Barba-Carisi, and she should get to wear the same costume that we all got to wear, Raf! It’s only fair. It’s her turn in the family. Unless…” He suddenly paused, sinking onto the couch next to his husband. “Unless you have a family costume you were planning on...or a tradition that is important here.”

“Our traditions generally involved not setting our children up to be made fun of,” Rafael quipped, and Sonny snorted and rolled his eyes.

“It’s gonna be like that, Rafi? Really?” He held up the costume again. “This costume is sixty-one years old. It’s had my dad, two uncles, five cousins, three sisters, me, and two nieces in it. My nonni knitted it while she was still pregnant with my dad. She made it because their money was tight but she had extra yarn in white and brown, and she was creative.” To his own surprise, Sonny felt his eyes tearing up. “I know it’s kind of goofy, and certainly not as pretty as some of the costumes you can buy, but Rafi? In our family, it’s an honor to wear this thing. Every Carisi gets to wear it only once, and every Carisi this year will get a picture of our baby in it, whether she wears it on Halloween or not.” 

Rafael felt his ears turn red in embarrassment. His husband may be a dork at times, but he was the sweetest, most loving and honorable dork he’d ever hope to know. “Sonny,” he said softly, resting a hand on Sonny’s thigh, “she’ll wear it. The whole night, not just for pictures. And you’re right. It’s an honor.”

Sonny beamed at him, then folded it up. “I’m going to put it away in her room, so it’ll be ready for Halloween,” he said, standing. He took a step toward the hallway, then stopped and leaned down to kiss his husband. “I love you, Rafael.”

“I love you too, my sweet cannoli,” Rafael teased. “Now let me get this junior cannoli in her bassinet.”

***

“This is so great!” Sonny gushed as they rolled the stroller through the school carnival. “I love Halloween, and how awesome is it that we get to go to a school carnival because I married a man whose mom is a principal! This is the best Halloween ever!” They’d been at the carnival for just over an hour, and it was clear that Sonny was having a great time.

Rafael rolled his eyes. “If you say so, babe. I think we must define ‘best Halloween’ by slightly different standards.”

“Costumes, games, candy...check, check, check...what are your standards?” Sonny asked, helping himself to some Skittles in a bowl on a picnic table. 

“Uh, people my age and alcohol are usually two of my criteria. And you might want to avoid the open air snacks...there’s hundreds of kids sticking their germy hands all over those.”

Sonny made a face and awkwardly spat into a napkin. “You are honestly the biggest Ebenezer I’ve ever met, and it’s not even Christmas…”

“I’m uncomfortable, Sonny!” Rafael replied, a bit irritably. “I can’t believe you made us both dress up like bakers. The apron was fine enough, but then you make me wear this idiotic baker’s hat…” he swung his hand up and flicked the large white chef’s hat on his head.

“It’s cute! We’re both the bakers who made this sweet cannoli!” Sonny argued, then peered into the stroller at their sleeping daughter. “Anyway, I didn’t hear you come up with a better suggestion.”

“Yes you did! I suggested we go as ourselves.” Just then, Marlene began to fuss, and Rafael leaned over to comfort her. “It’s okay, mija...shh, Papi’s right here, honey.” He picked the baby up and cradled her in his arms. 

“Why don’t you sit down with her here, and I’ll go get us some drinks and a snack, and look around for your mom, okay? I’ll be back in a few minutes. You want anything in particular?” Sonny handed Rafael a burp cloth.

“Yeah. A nice MaCallan twelve…” Sonny crossed his arms, so Rafael shrugged. “Okay, okay...just a coke, then. Thanks.” He watched his husband head off across the playground and hoped it wasn’t too hard to find his mom. They had promised her to say hello before they left, and he knew she’d kill him if he broke that promise.

They’d already been all the way to Staten Island earlier, so that Deb could see the baby in her full costume, and take family pictures with Sonny and Rafael dressed as bakers. She had taken tons of pictures with dozens of poses, then fed them dinner before letting them head to Lucia’s carnival. Rafael was tired just from their Carisi time, and he knew he was grumpier than he should be with Sonny.

But Sonny was patient with him. A week ago, when Deb had first suggested having a huge Halloween dinner with the family, Sonny had told her they absolutely could not commit to that. He knew Rafael’s nerves couldn’t take it, plus they had committed to Lucia’s carnival. Rafael consistently tried his hardest to support Sonny’s relationship with his family, but even after two years of marriage, he still struggled at times to handle the large groups, the noise, and the expectations.

Marlene began to fuss again, and he propped her against his shoulder once more. “There, there, princesa...you’re okay. Daddy’s gone to get your abuelita so she can see you! You’ll love that, won’t you, sweet baby girl?” He held her off of his shoulder and out in front of him so he could see her little face. She stopped crying and looked at him with wide eyes. He loved the fact that her eyes were green like his. He thought she was the most beautiful baby he’d ever seen, even though objectively, deep down in his gut, he knew she was skinny and her hair tended to frizz, and her eyes were too big for her face. It didn’t matter, though, because as far as he was concerned, she was perfect, and he told her so at least once every day. “Are you looking around?” he asked her now, grinning as her little head wobbled while she tried to watch him. “Hold on there, preciosa, you need some help.” Making sure the brown cannoli “shell” of her costume was fastened well, he settled her in the crook of his arm so that she could see his face clearly, and he could see hers. He’d read somewhere that was a good thing to do.

The song “Monster Mash” started suddenly and caused the baby to reflexively jump. She was a bit startled and began to cry again. “You’re all right,” he told her, kissing her forehead again. Olivia had told him a few months ago that he would fall in love with this baby, that he would experience a kind of love he’d never experienced before, and he had smiled and nodded to humor her. To be honest, he thought she was exaggerating. How could Olivia know what kind of love he’d experienced in his life? But as he sat there now, cooing and making dreamy love faces at his baby daughter, he realized he owed his friend an apology. He loved this baby in a way he couldn’t put into words, and that was saying something, considering his career was all about words. This baby had him wrapped completely, he thought as she stared at him as though she were memorizing his face. The only other person he’d known to ever look at him like that was Sonny, and, well…

“Excuse me, sir?” A woman with a double stroller and two kids approached him. Both kids were little, and the boy was dressed as a toothbrush and the girl was toothpaste. He wondered if they were related to the Carisis. “We were just wondering...is your baby supposed to be a cannoli, and you’re a baker? That is about the cutest costuming I’ve ever seen!”

He nodded. “Yes, we are. Thank you! Her costume is a family tradition--from my husband’s side,” he found himself explaining.

“Well, we saw you here and just had to say how cute you guys are! You should enter the costume contest! I bet you’d win.”

He chuckled. “Toothpaste and a toothbrush are pretty clever,” he remarked kindly. “I’m sure you all have a great chance.”

They said goodnight, and he couldn’t help but smile. A few minutes later, another family stopped and commented on their costumes, and then a group of elementary-aged kids walked up to him.

“Hey mister, what’s your baby s’posed to be? Is she somethin’ in a bun?” one of them asked, and another shook his head. “Nah, Joey, can’tcha see? The dad’s a baker so his kid’s gotta be somethin’ in a bakery...maybe a donut…”

Joey scuffed his shoe on the ground and mumbled, “Buns are in bakeries too, dummy.”

The smallest of the group, who was sucking on a lollipop, softly said, “She’s a cannoli, wight, mistuh?”

He smiled at the little girl and nodded. “You’re right! She’s a cannoli and I’m a baker.”

One of the older boys laughed. “Cuz you made her! Shouldn’t her ma be the baker? Where’s her ma?”

“Her mother isn’t here tonight, Louis.” Lucia, just arriving, smiled and crossed her arms, looking down at the group. “Are you all having a good time? Did you use all the tickets you earned?”

Throughout the summer and fall, children could earn tickets for the carnival by reading, helping in the community or school, and completing assignments on time. The children all grinned and nodded at her. “I still got five!” Louis told her. “I’m gonna use ‘em for a brownie before we leave.”

“You might want to do that soon. I know they’re running low. Mr. Johnson’s brownies are always very popular. I’d go ahead and try to get one, if I were you,” she told him, and a second later the group was moving toward the snack bar. Except the littlest, who had correctly guessed that Marlene was a cannoli. 

“Is that your cannoli, Mrs. Barba?” she asked, quiet but excited. “She’s so pretty!”

“She’s my son’s cannoli, Rishika...so, my grand-cannoli.” They all chuckled and Lucia reached for the baby as Rafael gently passed her over. “Her real name is Marlene, and she is three months old. Isn’t she beautiful?”

“Uh-huh,” the little girl responded, looking closely at the baby. Her eyes then moved from Rafael to Sonny, who was standing next to Lucia, and asked, “Which one is her dad?”

“They both are,” she told the little girl, and kissed Marlene’s forehead. The baby reached for her face and began to coo. 

Rishika giggled. “She wikes you, Mrs. Barba! She’s a wucky cannoli.” Suddenly realizing that Louis was standing a few yards away calling her, she said, “I gotta go...bye wittle cannoli girl! It was nice to meet you!”

“Bye!” they all told her, and Lucia took the opportunity to pepper Marlene’s face with kisses. “Rishika is right. You are just the prettiest little cannoli, aren’t you!” she cooed, and Marley giggled.

Sonny passed a coke and a package of pretzels over to his husband. “You tired, babe?”

“Mmm. Yeah,” he answered, leaning against Sonny’s side as he sat down. Nudging his mother, he added, “I bet you’re exhausted.”

“Of course,” she told him, “but what kind of a party are you throwing if you’re not tired when it’s done?” She planted kisses on the baby’s face again, then handed her back to Rafael. “Thank you two for taking the time to come out here. I know it’s a lot to do, but I really appreciate it.”

“We’re so happy to do it,” Sonny told her, smiling. “I love Halloween carnivals.”

“I’d think he was lying, but I’m not sure he’s capable,” she told Rafael, then chucked Sonny under the chin. “Take good care of my sweet cannoli, and her grumpy baker here. I love you all.” 

“We love you too, Mom,” Rafael told her, and she headed back toward the action as they got Marlene packed back in her stroller.

***

“Thanks, Ma,” Sonny told his mom on the Monday after Halloween. He had just gotten home from an early shift. Deb had been there since eight in the morning when Rafael had to leave. Sonny knew just how lucky they were to have his mom watching their daughter. He handed her a bag with the costume tucked neatly inside.

“You’re very welcome,” she told him, peeking inside, then pulling out the hat. “Here, Dominick. Keep this for Marlene. I made this specifically for her. I know it’s old fashioned and probably not your husband’s style, but I think it’s precious, even if she never wears it again. But she might be able to, sometime this spring. For Easter, maybe. She’d be precious in this knitted cap, hopefully with a little more hair on her head.”

Sonny grinned. “Yeah, she would, Ma. Thank you.”

“I left some copies of the photos I took this weekend on your kitchen table. If you want any more, just let me know and I’ll print them off, or we can send them to Walgreen’s. Whatever you want.” Pulling on her jacket, she said, “Thanks for humoring me with this. I’m sure that having your baby dressed as a cannoli wasn’t your husband’s fantasy when he imagined her first costume, but it meant a lot to me and your dad.” 

“I think he understood, Ma,” Sonny reassured her. “And the kids at Lucia’s school thought it was so cool. They loved it.”

“Well, good.” Deb grabbed her bag and headed toward the door.

“Hey Ma? I just wanted to tell you thanks. Thanks for keeping that tradition alive for us. The stuff you do...it means a lot. It’s a little embarrassing to admit, but sometimes I’m just realizing that.” Sonny rubbed the back of his neck and smiled awkwardly.

“It’s all right, son.” Deb reached out and hugged him. “You’ll realize it a lot more as she grows. Just remember, my phone is always open for your calls pleading for forgiveness for all the things you’ve done, as she puts you through each and every one of them.” 

With a grin, she was gone, leaving Sonny to wonder how soon he’d be making a call.


End file.
